girlinnyc

Tammy, if you take the right amount of shakes per day (for me it was 5 Optifast shakes), the first say, 2 days will be rough--and then your appetite will calm down on its own. if you're working--your mind will be busy with work--ask your dr. if you can have any fresh or cooked, non-carb (no potatoes, corn, peas) vegetables during the day---and it's doable. believe me, i did it. i wasn't HAPPY, no way--but i did it. i didn't shake--i was irritable--but then amazingly--my appetite calmed way down. i was surprised--i thought "why could i never do this BEFORE having it required by upcoming SURGERY?" --well of course, i had done it once before, for a few MONTHS even--but--of course, in the end..gained all the weight back and more--many more years of yo-yo dieting followed---so---here i am--banded. but--the pre-op diet is doable--even without appetite suppresants. you'll do fine! i promise! -Girlin NYC

hope you feel better soon! take care of yourself!!

i think you need to sit up for awhile. not good to lie down that full. try sitting up in bed for awhile, ok?

i think you just had too much--you have to wait for it to settle down. you're probably very full. i had surgery this past monday ...so i kind of know what you mean. i drank too much soup--then iced tea--was too much--we have to get used to cutting back! our eyes are now bigger than our stomachs!

can you sit and wait for this to pass? it must feel very bad. is this restriction? have you had it before? i feel your pain (even tho i don't have restriction yet). watch tv--try to distract yourself. it's got to pass--no?

What's wrong???

are you using optifast? i put them in the blender with ice--and even some vanilla flavoring, if you want--makes them foamy and taste better. try that! bet it would work with slim fast too. i got a $14.99 blender from target or kmart for this task--it crushes ice well and is plastic and easy to clean.

Shawn, Good luck and we'll see you on the "other side" of banding! :clap2: Take it easy--and i'm sure you'll do very well. I'll be thinking of you on Tuesday and hoping for the very best. and will be looking forward to hearing your story after! :confused: Regards, girlin nyc

i heard about this website from someone else--will have to try them--right now!!

i will try some crystal light--have tried the others--can't stand another sip of iced tea!! thanks!

much less tired--though i think i've totally messed up my normal sleeping pattern---i'm up ALL NIGHT--and that's not going to work for my day job. MUST get back to sleep at a normal hour--TONIGHT. i have virtually no pain--but i'm itching where the steri-strips are--and that's starting to drive me crazy. also, i take quite a few medications--which i used to swallow in one big gulp. that now takes 30 min or more--one pill at a time--and the larger pills either are cut up (into 6 separate pieces) or have been portioned into smaller one-pill doses (multiple) of the larger amounts. this all takes TIME to get down. then i feel very full--and i'm not sure whether they're going down that easily--or gathering in a lump somewhere. hard to tell. i have been VERY hungry. this liquid only diet for 2 full weeks--i'll never survive it. :cry i have esophogram appt on wed--then followup with surgeon's office-where i hope to ask if i can move on to more substantial food. i have taken pain killer as an appetite suppressant--it worked--but i'm sure that's not a good strategy. i also have some light burping--don't know what that's from--hope that will ease up soon. or--is that a "rest of my life" thing? hard to know at the moment. have i lost weight? oh, who knows. i'm only going to "officially" weigh at the dr's office. my scale changes depending on what part of the 100-yr old tile floor it's on. i can "lose" 5 lbs in 2 seconds--by moving the scale!

yep--it is--i had optifast for 2 wks--but was allowed a small amount of cooked or raw vegetables (no starchy vegs) and soup...so i was ok. i'm much hungrier now than i was then!

best piece of advice i got--as i was leaving the hospital the next morning--"ask for some painkiller"--that REALLY helped me out on ride home and while waiting for prescription to be filled! good luck on your surgery!

pretty "good" - and pretty hungry. have a liquid stage that's supposed to last 2 full weeks. don't feel like i can stand it that long. have a post-op appt on wed for esophogram and then the dr's office--will ask if there's something else i can eat--at night i am RAVENOUS. have some slight burping--don't know what that's from--optifast? diet iced tea? water??? what are you eating??

jan 8th was my day.

Kathy, Hope you're feeling a lot better soon. the first 2 days after surgery were the hardest (for me)--i was banded Monday and i feel a WHOLE LOT BETTER NOW! so keep going--it GETS BETTER!! best wishes, girlin nyc

and i'm feeling almost human--though somewhat dizzy. probably from lying down too much and not getting up a lot--so--fixing that today. am showered, dressed, shoes on--ready to walk a WHOLE BLOCK (a long one, an AVENUE block) to the nail salon. there's a treat. make my nails look better==-the a WHOLE BLOCK BACK--and collapse. am still not really hungry--keeping very hydrated--must remember to sip, sip--not gulp, gulp. am "burping" slightly--just a little--anyone have any ideas on that? i wonder if this is a new, permanent feature....oy vey. well--time to go out, before i feel too sick and dizzy to try it. my nails are screaming for me to go. p.s. incisions (or steri-strips) are clean--no bleeding, seeping, or anything else--and not much pain. took much less painkiller--and only once so far today--about 5 hrs ago.

i see you and i had the same banding date==Monday! how are you feeling? i feel kind of dizzy and weird. not in much pain--today definitely better than yesterday...but not "right." drinking optifast shakes--slowly--and get some slight burping. how bout you?? best wishes, girlin nyc

i'm from nyc too. just got banded this Monday, at NYU-Dr. Fielding. feeling blah...

and i'm feeling almost human--though somewhat dizzy. probably from lying down too much and not getting up a lot--so--fixing that today. am showered, dressed, shoes on--ready to walk a WHOLE BLOCK (a long one, an AVENUE block) to the nail salon. there's a treat. make my nails look better==-the a WHOLE BLOCK BACK--and collapse. am still not really hungry--keeping very hydrated--must remember to sip, sip--not gulp, gulp. am "burping" slightly--just a little--anyone have any ideas on that? i wonder if this is a new, permanent feature....oy vey. well--time to go out, before i feel too sick and dizzy to try it. my nails are screaming for me to go. p.s. incisions (or steri-strips) are clean--no bleeding, seeping, or anything else--and not much pain. took much less painkiller--and only once so far today--about 5 hrs ago.

came home today and SLEPT! didn't sleep so well in the hospital--some gas pain--which moved around--and now is gone! so, i was up at 2 am, commiserating with another guy who was banded right after me---then, when my iv pole started beeping away, because it was out of battery juice, i had to return to my room so it could be plugged in--but wasn't sleepy--so, read until 4 am--then fell asleep until 5:30 am--when they started coming around to take temperatures, and so on...so--really, not a lot of sleep time. i'm AMAZED at how "not so bad" it all was. the dr. (fielding at nyu medical center in nyc) has this down to a factory assembly line--and the anesthesiologists and supporting staff were all really on the ball. when i woke up in recovery--i was conscious, not in pain, and able to talk to my visitors. i did just fine. today--i had several things to drink--and some painkiller---big tip--ask for painkiller before you leave the hospital--that percocet pill for the ride home was VERY helpful. i basically feel like i've been punched in the stomach a number of times--so, a dull ache--but nothing REALLY SHARP or UNBEARABLE. the incisions are packed with gauze over the steri-strips--and plastic over that. they said i could take a shower--but was afraid to. tomorrow, i can take the plastic off the steri-strips--they stay on. i've HAD open abdominal surgery--next to that--this was really, REALLY bearable. please write and ask me any questions. i'm very happy to be home--i'm working on my optifast shake (watered down) and i'm really NOT hungry. watching tv, sleeping on and off--and taking the rest of the week off. ahhhh, so glad it's OVER!!

i check into the hospital at 11:30 am==it's now 9:30. i just took "the last bath"--and now i have to get my husband (a bad photographer) to take my "before" pix. i got up before the crack of dawn--because i was anxious! then i fell back asleep and missed my "want to by up by" time of 8 am. i am HUNGRY (of course) because i can't eat anything now. and THIRSTY--but i made sure to drink some water just before midnight. will post back after it's ALL OVER!! EEEEK! :omg:

i check into the hospital at 11:30 am==it's now 9:30. i just took "the last bath"--and now i have to get my husband (a bad photographer) to take my "before" pix. i got up before the crack of dawn--because i was anxious! then i fell back asleep and missed my "want to by up by" time of 8 am. i am HUNGRY (of course) because i can't eat anything now. and THIRSTY--but i made sure to drink some water just before midnight. will post back after it's ALL OVER!! EEEEK! :omg:

i plan on taking 1 week off--that's all i get! so i hope it's enough! best wishes, girlin nyc

hey--i miss eating--and i haven't gotten banded yet. how's that for pathetic? i FEEL YOUR PAIN! but look at the weight you've lost--that must feel REALLY GOOD. i'm waiting to lose 20 lbs. i would LOVE to lose 20 lbs. even if feel sad about not stuffing my face anymore--i am looking forward to the benefits of feeling better--and, vanity speaks--looking better! can you try to distract yourself? reading, tv, shopping? anything?? do you have any hobbies you can immerse yourself in? i find knitting is good--certainly can't eat while you're knitting! go to michael's or another craft store--look around for something to do to amuse yourself!! best wishes, girlin nyc